Orgone - Pleroma

Band:	Orgone
Album:	Pleroma
Style:	Progressive death metal, Technical death metal
Release date:	June 24, 2024
A review by:	nikarg

01. Silentium
02. Approaching Babel
03. Valley Of The Locust
04. Hymne à La Beauté
05. Flâneurs
06. Lily By Lily
07. Ubiquitous Divinity
08. Trawling The Depths
09. Mourning Dove
10. Schemes Of Fulfillment
11. Pleroma

Pleroma is the long-awaited third album by Orgone, arriving ten years since their previous offering, The Joyless Parson. It seems that the album was delayed quite a bit, but, in the end, maybe this is how much time a band needs to create such a wondrous work of musical art.

Orgone is a band that played technical/progressive death metal in their early days, with The Goliath debut, they expanded their sound with The Joyless Parson, and they have gone absolutely nuts with their latest LP. Pleroma sounds like Orgone used the last two tracks from The Joyless Parson as a guide on what music to record, and, as much as their previous output is commendable and original, this album is more of everything; it is more progressive, more melodic, more ambitious, more intricate, more adventurous, more avant-garde, and more infectious. And, while there are many bands out there pushing the boundaries of extreme metal, I cannot find a single one to directly compare to Orgone and to the music they play right now.

While elements of Ne Obliviscaris,Opeth,Gorguts, Aquilus, or Anareta can be heard, it’s difficult to put into words the extraordinary musicality and the genre-bending brilliance that has been put on record by Orgone. The technical death metal is present, of course, but the passages of chamber music and jazz, the classical instruments, the complex rhythms, the ethereal sections, and even the different languages used (English, French, Russian, and Slovak, if I am not mistaken) just make for a jaw-dropping result. Orgone have brought together sounds that -on paper- cannot be mixed, but they have mixed them alright, and this work of art is hands-down inimitable. Most bands that branch out of the metal territory to incorporate other ingredients often do it in a way that feels forced, pretentious, underdeveloped, or unbelonging, but, in this case, everything is so meticulously crafted that the diverse features never clash; instead they are seamlessly integrated to provide a cohesive and unforgettable listening experience.

The ability to evoke a wide range of emotions is one of the album’s greatest successes, because even the most striking musicianship means nothing, if it doesn’t have an impact on your heart and soul. Pleroma travels through intense blast beats, punishing riffs, and guttural vocals, to melancholic melodies, beautiful string sections, and mesmerizing female vocals, creating a rollercoaster of sounds and feelings that never fail to captivate. The lyrical themes explore philosophical and existential concepts, and Orgone have actually made a hardcover book with those that you can buy.

In order to have an idea of how a band can perfectly build up a track, listen to “Hymne à la Beauté”. If you want to see how a band can make a song keep you at the edge of your seat for a whole 18 minutes, listen to “Trawling the Depths”. Pleroma is a demonstration of impeccable musicianship, a masterclass of diverse and intricate songwriting, and a triumph of pushing the boundaries, while also generating enough hooks to draw the listeners in, instead of scaring them away. It is, of course, a challenging experience, and multiple listens are required to fully grasp everything that is going on. But even after the first listen, there are enough passages that stay in your mind and compel you to re-experience this inspired piece of extreme progressive metal with a touch of avant-garde.

I don’t know what else to say to convince you to check this album out. I don’t know how Orgone made this without any label support, and, with their minimal social media presence, it’s almost as if they don’t want to promote themselves. It will be a crime if it goes unnoticed, because Pleroma is one of the most unique and awe-inspiring metal albums of the year.

“It’s preferable to wander accursed in exile
than to abide in permanent self-revulsion
indebted to any cult”